HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- The City of Huntsville is testing out a chemical sealant designed to make pavement last longer.

Crews spent Thursday morning spraying $19,000 worth of Reclamite on a stretch of Bailey Cove Road near Grissom High School. Public Works Director Terry Hatfield said he believes Huntsville is the first Alabama city to use the sealing and waterproofing product.

"You spray it on the seams where the asphalt comes together, and it keeps water from seeping down into it," Hatfield said Wednesday. "It's supposed to extend the life of a street by five to seven years."

Reclamite was applied to the asphalt seams on Bailey Cove between Four Mile Post and Weatherly roads. It dries in about 45 minutes, said Hatfield, and has no effect on road traction.

You can expect to see more streets being sprayed with Reclamite in 2013 because the city needs to make its 30,000 lane miles hold up longer, said Hatfield.

While Huntsville's $2.7 million annual paving budget sounds like a lot, he said it would cost more than $2 billion to repave every public street.